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Norseman update – 26 July – The Taper

In Ironman, Norseman triathlon, Simon Ward, Training of TTC (July 26, 2009 3:09 pm)

According to Wilmore & Costill (Physiology of Sport & Exercise) tapering “should provide adequate time for healing of tissue damage caused by intense training and time for the body’s energy reserves to be fully replenished”. As well as the body this is also the time to give the mind a break of regular high volume or intensity training.

The optimum duration for a taper seems to vary from athlete to athlete and event to event (Olynpic distance or Ironman). Even the same athlete following an identical taper for each race can get different results depending upon external stress factors.

This time I have chosen a 2 week taper. Research has shown that swimmers & runners who reduce their training by about 60% for 15-21 days show no losses in Vo2max or endurance performance. So why do athletes like to train harder for longer coming into a race? Maybe it’s the desire to try & gain that last little bit of fitness (could be possible up to about 10 days out but you run the risk of still being fatigued on race day), a fear of losing fitness (research shows this won’t happen with the right training in the taper) or maybe it’s the worry of gaining weight when they ease off the training (You do have to adjust the eating in line with the training – a bit of a problem for some triathletes with big appetites!)

So the optimum taper is one which works for the athlete and their own personal circumstances. The 3 points that the scientists do agree on is this

Reduce the volume
Keep the intensity high
Maintain the frequency of training

So here is my taper plan for the next 2 weeks, coming off the back of 2 x 18hr weeks. It’s just an outline as the sessions could change depending on how tired I feel.

Week 1 – 8-10hrs training inc Swim 3-4sessions (approx 2k ea), Bike 3-4 sessions (1-2hrs), Run Wed,Fri,Sun – 30-45′ ea, Wts 1 x 30′ circuit

Week 2 – 4-5 hrs training Swim 3 sessions (20-30′ ea), Bike 3 sessions (30-45′ ea) Run 2 sessions (20′30′ ea) – No Wts

Above all I’ll be aiming for the following

Extra rest
Careful eating (I’m at 77k right now, just above my target weight but I’m feeling healthy & strong)
Clear the little niggles that have been bothering me – tight hip, ITB tenderness, tight hamstring
Minimise stress (no matter how well training has gone I’m convinced that this is a major factor in how well athletes perform on race day…more of this in another post)
Mentally prepare for the event
Feel like Tigger!

Next posting is about my mental prep for Norseman

Thanks for reading

Stay healthy & have fun

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